I love to read and do so as often as I can. I have a selection of physical books in my home and I also use my eReader to read books, magazines, and newspapers. If you love to read, I'm sure you'll agree that having a home library is a wonderful thing. However, books can quickly multiply and turn into clutter.
Cutting down on the volume of physical books, and organizing those you hold most dear, keeps the clutter at bay, provides you with more space, and ensures you can find the book you want quickly.
Here are some organized ways to edit your home library:
1. Declutter Strategically: Start by assessing your book collection. Separate books into three categories:
a) Keep
b) Donate
c) Pass on
There are some books that are worth reading over and over; and many that were
just enjoyable...but that you don't need to read again.
Consider whether you are likely to read a book again. If you most definitely will, that's a keeper. Donate or pass on the others. Local libraries, used bookstores, and thrift stores will often gladly take your
donations.
You may also have friends and family who fall into the book lover's category. If you do, pass those books on to them. Let those people know that when they've completed the book, they should not give the book back to you, but rather pass it on to someone else.
Also, many towns have outdoor boxes known as Little Free Libraries. You can tuck your books into those so someone checking out the Little Free Library can discover it.
2. Categorize and Prioritize: Organize
your remaining books by categories. You don't have to go overboard with categories. Mine are separated by main topics such as:
Biographies/History
Novels
How
To
Entertainment
If you'd like, you can sub-categorize within your topics, such as sorting by book title or author's last name in the novels category.
This can help in creating distinct sections within your library and make it easier to locate specific books when needed.
3. Always Be Sure the Book Spine is Visible: This makes it much easier to find what you're looking for. Organize books in bookcases
and on bookshelves.
4. Avoid Stacking: It can sometimes look visually pleasing to lay books down and pile one on top of the other for decorative purposes. However, if you do this, keep your piles short. In doing so, you'll be able to retrieve the book you want without having to lift many books to get to
it.
Of course, it's much easier to retrieve a book that is upright, like books are displayed in your town's library or bookstore, so use this system in most cases.
5. Consider an eReader and Embrace Digital Minimalism: Consider incorporating an eReader into your reading routine. eReaders provide a compact and convenient way to access a vast library of books without taking up physical space. Reserve your home library for your most cherished and visually appealing physical books.
Happy reading!
